Microsoft eyes 13”, 14” Surface Pro tablets

Sales of Microsoft Corp.’s Surface Pro 3 tablets in the Q3 2014 were significantly higher than sales of any other slate from the software giant; in order to strengthen its success, the company reportedly considering plans to release Surface Pro tablets with larger displays.

At present Microsoft offers a variety of Surface Pro 3 tablets with 12” screens, which is optimal for a wide range of customers. However, Microsoft is mulling 13” and even 14” versions of Surface Pro for those, who want to replace their high-performance notebooks with tablets, reports DigiTimes. The plan is at its early stage, and it still remains uncertain if Microsoft proceeds with it.

Driven by strong sales of Surface Pro 3, Microsoft’s tablets revenue in Q1 FY2015 (ended on the 30th of September, 2014) increased 127 per-cent year-over-year to $908 million. According to Microsoft, unit sales of the Surface Pro 3 during the quarter were pacing at twice the rate of what it saw with the Surface Pro 2.

Keeping in mind that Microsoft positions Surface Pro 3 as productivity solutions as well as notebook replacements, it makes a lot of sense to offer versions with enlarged screens. On the other hand, people who need large displays also need proper ways to input information, which means keyboards. As a result, instead of buying a tablet with a keyboard they can simply buy a notebook.

KitGuru Says: Large tablets may make a lot of sense on various markets where input is either not crucial or can be simplified. However, large displays also mean increased weight, which greatly limits mobility of such devices. As a result, Microsoft will need to develop 13” or 14” slates from scratch, not just introduce enlarged flavours of the Surface Pro 3.